Congo: More than 2,000 dead from Ebola
The World Health Organization warns that the Bundibugyo strain, for which there is no vaccine or treatment, threatens to spread to neighboring countries. The death toll has doubled in less than a month.
The World Health Organization warns that the Bundibugyo strain, for which there is no vaccine or treatment, threatens to spread to neighboring countries. The death toll has doubled in less than a month.
The number of confirmed Ebola deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo has surpassed 2,000, the Congolese health ministry announced on Tuesday. According to data reviewed by Reuters in a report from the national institute of public health, a total of 4,381 confirmed infections have been recorded across five provinces, with 2,011 deaths. Another 704 patients are currently undergoing treatment and isolation. Congolese health authorities estimate the fatality rate in the current outbreak at 45.9 percent.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed this is the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on record. The outbreak was officially declared on May 15, 2026, but the WHO notes that virus transmission began as early as February, and a study published last month in the journal Science suggests infection may have occurred as early as January in Ituri province. More than 500 suspected cases were identified between mid-January and May 15. Sania Nishtar, CEO of the global vaccine alliance Gavi, said this is the largest outbreak in the country's history "and could become the largest ever."
This outbreak differs from most previous ones because it is caused by a rare strain of the virus, Bundibugyo, for which there are no approved vaccines or specific treatments. Health workers and humanitarian teams warn that aid is not arriving quickly enough to remote and hard-to-reach areas, further complicating contact tracing, isolating the sick, and curbing the spread. Many health workers have gone on strike to protest unpaid wages since the outbreak was declared, further weakening the response.
WHO vaccine experts on Friday recommended a full clinical trial in humans of the only existing approved Ebola vaccine, Ervebo, to determine whether it offers cross-protection against the strain currently spreading in Congo. The vaccine has proven safe and effective against the more common Zaire strain, and early data, particularly from animal studies, suggest it may provide some protection against the rare Bundibugyo strain. Two potential vaccines specific to Bundibugyo are in early stages of human clinical trials, while a third is being worked on to bring it to that stage. WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Mohamed Yakub Janabi, admitted at a press conference: "We are chasing the virus, and the virus is ahead of us."
This is the 17th Ebola outbreak Congo has faced since the virus was first identified in 1976 near the Ebola River. The WHO has declared the current outbreak a public health emergency of international concern because cases have also been confirmed in neighboring Uganda.
The speed of the virus's spread is illustrated by alarming figures: while it took nine weeks to reach the first 1,000 deaths, the next 1,000 deaths were recorded in just three weeks. According to data from N1 Serbia sources, the jump from 1,000 to 2,000 deaths occurred in less than a month, dramatically faster than in the previous outbreak in Congo from 2018 to 2020, when it took just over 12 months to reach the same number of victims. That deadliest outbreak in the country to date claimed nearly 2,300 lives out of 3,500 recorded cases, and the current outbreak is already approaching that figure.
For comparison, the only larger Ebola outbreak in history was the one in West Africa from 2014 to 2016, when 28,616 cases and 11,310 deaths were recorded in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. But even then, it took nearly five months from the declaration of the outbreak to reach 1,000 deaths, while Congo has surpassed that number in less than three months since the official announcement.
Shortages of medical equipment and insecurity in affected areas are further hampering field efforts, health officials warn. Humanitarian organizations are calling for urgent international assistance to prevent further spread of the virus in the region.
